Belleek Castle, Ballina
The eccentric and amazing 19th century Belleek Castle is filled with all manner of curiosities to draw you in: Pirate Queen Grace O’Malley’s four-poster bed, a bar built from the salvaged 400-year-old wood of Spanish Armada shipwrecks and one of the finest collections of arms and armour in the whole of Ireland. But it’s the warmth of the smiles that greet you when you enter the Great Hall, and the smell of the turf burning on an open fire that will have you lingering for a while in this manor house by the Moy.
The award-winning food is both classic and imaginative, all created using local seasonal ingredients from the land, sea and air mixed with a large dollop of tradition. When you do rise from your four-poster bed, help yourself to homemade bread and jam, then take a guided tour of the beautiful collections and grounds.